The Russian Revolution 1917

Cause 1 – Problems for the Peasants Before the Revolution, 75% of peasants lived in villages like this one: date. What are the houses in this picture made of? How can you tell the people are very poor? What do you think it was like to live in this village during the winter?

Problems for the Peasants Until 1861, the peasants were serfs They could not move away from the land Their owners could buy and sell them In 1861, the Czar freed the serfs The peasants received land but needed to pay the government back. They were very poor Most could not read or write

Problems for the Peasants A very small number of people had most of the wealth. They owned most of the land. The Russian Orthodox Church was also very powerful.

Cause 2 – Problems for the Workers Workers in a Russian factory, 1913

Industrial Expansion In the early 1900’s the Russian government wanted factories so…. Russia could become rich and powerful like Britain, the USA and Germany. These countries had been through the Industrial Revolution. Industry was also needed to strengthen Russia’s ability to defend herself. To win a war, a country needed large industries to produce ammunition and railway lines to equip and transport armies.

Source #1 In the early 1900’s Russian industry grew very quickly. Industrial workers had very hard lives. They suffered long hours and dangerous conditions for very low pay. What does this mean?

Source #2 The speed of industrialisation led to overcrowding in the cities. Many slept in their factories while others lived in uncomfortable barracks and those fortunate to find a flat or a room often had to share with several other families. What does this mean?

Source #3 Russian and German Industrialization in 1913 Germany Russia Coal (millions of tonnes) 190.0 36.0 Pig Iron (millions of tonnes) 6.8 4.6 Steel (millions of tonnes) 8.3 4.8 Railways (thousands of kilometers) 64.0 65.0 What does this mean?

Source #4 Year Number of Strikes 1910 222 1911 466 1912 2032 1913 2404 1914 4098

Source #5 It was difficult for the Czar (Russia’s ruler) to help the workers. Many Russian factories were owned by foreign companies who invested in Russia because it cost so little to employ Russian workers. If the Czar passed laws making the foreign companies pay the Russian workers more the foreign companies might take their business elsewhere instead. This would ruin the process of Industrialisation that Russia needed. What does this mean?

From your notes, answer these questions: (you can work with the person next to you) List as many problems for the workers in Russian city factories as you can. Why did many people in Russia go to the cities to work even though conditions were terrible? Why would Russia want to industrialize (build factories to produce goods)?

Cause 3 – Bad Government The Family of Czar Nicholas II Nicholas Romanov (Czar Nicholas II) Alexandra (his wife) They had 5 children. Olga (born 1895) Tatiana (born 1897) Maria (born 1899) Anastasia (born 1901) Alexei (born 1904)

What’s a Czar? Russian Kings called themselves Czar, which means ‘emperor’. The Czar ruled on his own, with a few ministers that he chose himself People did not have the right to vote Most Czars ruled in a harsh manner

Czar Nicholas II Nicholas became Czar in 1894 He had trouble making decisions He did not want Russia to modernize He wanted to have absolute power

The 1905 Revolution On January 22, a large group of people marched on the Czar’s home, the Winter Palace It was a peaceful demonstration They were asking for higher wages and better working conditions Instead, soldiers opened fire on them At least 200 people were killed

The Czar’s Decisions You have an envelope in front of you. In it are the events that followed Bloody Sunday. Please put the events in order with the person you sit next to.

The Czar’s Decisions Right answers: F, I, B, A, C, J, G, H, E, D

The Czar’s Decisions Looking at the Czar’s Decisions, make a list: Which ones were good decisions? Which ones were bad? Which of the Czar’s decisions helped him the most? Which hurt him? Which of the Czar’s decisions helped the people the most?

Finally… Look over your notes from the past few days. List as many reasons as you can think of why people in Russia would be unhappy with their government.